Author
Topic: Manifest Desolation (Read 32728 times)

As they stood there talking, they suddenly became aware of a steadily approaching noise. It didn't sound quite like footsteps, but almost like it was trying to be. Before they could go investigate it, something lurched around the corner. It was, or had been, one of the station employees, judging by what was left of the uniform. However, if the appearance was any indication, vital signs had departed some time ago. Decomp was pretty far along, and it left a trail of sticky black foot prints. For about two seconds, it looked at them, then it grinned horribly. More of the sticky black stuff oozed out of it's mouth as it did. Then it lunged forward, swinging a heavy flashlight it had been carrying at Guy's head.

((And that would be initiative, ladies and gentlemen. Val, Scras, you're up first, I await carnage.))

ACtion and thought became two seperate entities within Montag, his mind screamed in the face of a horror that had come crawling up out of his nightmares. His body, his reflexes, were better trained, action coming easily to him. There was no question of friend of foe, just the gut reaction of ENEMY. He lunged forward, bringing the stock of his tranq gun up hard and fast to crack the thing across the face, a blow that would send a normal man sprawling, often with a broken jaw, spitting blood and teeth.

Dr. Tran's patience had been worn thin by the pounding headache. "Mr. Crowe, you hired me for the breadth of my knowledge and scientific abilities. You should hardly be surprised when I demonstrate those ablilities. As you know, not..."

His voice went silent as the shambling thing appeared. Struck by the pathetic remnant's impossible animation, Dr. Tran's first thought was to wonder what could have caused the man's strange condition. While a staple of late-night Tri-D, such a grotesque effect seemed unreal, like something from a nightmare.

Real or not, he didn't intend to get killed by the thing. Stepping over to one of the tool chests that lined the maintenance bay's walls, he opened the locker holding the bulkhead torches. The welding devices could deliver a nasty blast of plasma, once the safety interlocks were disabled. Hefting one of the cumbersome welders, he entered the override code.

The stock of Montag's gun connected with the... thing's jaw with a sick crunch. Black sludge splattered everywhere, and the thing's jaw was now hanging loose, mostly crushed. It brought the flashlight down, but the force of Montag's blow had spun it a little, and it hit his shoulder instead of his head. Pain shot down his arm; something was at least cracked, if not broken. But the thing apparently had none existant balance and worse reaction time; it stumbled past Guy on it's follow-through. This had an expected benefit: it gave Derek a clear, if close, shot.

Meanwhile Dr. Tran sparked the welder, and it roared into life. The two techs had bolted when the thing showed up, and Dietrich had pushed Crowe behind him, and currently seemed to be trying to decide if he wanted to chance using his hand-cannon.

((Scras, shoulder's broken, although you can decide if it was your gun hand. Hurts like a mofo, but you can keep fighting without a problem. Wulf, you're up. Val, you can still get a shot in if you want.))

Stepping around the brawl, Dr. Tran hefted his improvised weapon and sent a focussed blast of raging energy into the clumsy revenant's neck, hoping to burn through what remained of its spinal cord. White-hot plasma tore through tattered clothing and flesh, setting what remained of the thing's hair on fire.

Unfortunately, the awkward creature flailed out sideways at the wrong moment, causing the fiery blast to miss its spine. Its head hanging at an awkward angle, the thing stumbled to face its new assailant.

Derek's shots hit, and broke something, judging by the sound. The thing toppled forward, landing with an unpleasant squish. It tried to get back up, but the damage it had taken was proving too much for it. It clawed at Tran and Montag's legs for a moment, then twitched and fell inanimate. A pool of the black ooze was spreading around it. From the back row, Crowe and Dietrich stared at it. "Well, that was... unexpected," Crowe murmured. Dietrich was less restrained. "What the HELL is going on here? The hell is that thing?"

Syrus entered the room where everyone was and stopped just as he stepped in. "Um, obviously, I missed something," Syrus said as he saw the thing on the floor. Syrus had just regained his composure, and he refused to lose it now. In fact, even with what little information the kid had given him, it was enough for him to expect something like this. "Alright then, Mr. Crowe, everyone else, I suggest we go back and regroup, I've got intel, and Mr. Crowe here, in spite of my new found knowledge, definately has some explaining to do," Syrus said as he glared at his employer. He pulled his revolver from its holster, checked the rounds, and re-holstered it. He kicked the thing, and realized the black slime puddle. "Someone get a sample of this, and analyse it. Mr. Crowe, while whoever is doing that is doing it, you and I need to have a word," Syrus said in all seriousness. Syrus pulled a smoke from his new pack, lit it, and took a long drag. Things were going to get very clear, or alot more confusing.

Logged

"Try to kill me, I'll be laughing," Celak

"You want to know who I am? Or WHAT I am? There is a huge difference," Kui

"Assassinate the assassin, then shoot the plane down!" Saul

"I once ate a skinned cat. It's owner didn't like me much after that," Dave

Crowe glowered. "There is someone playing with some very expensive equipment, a child by all indications, even though there shouldn't be any children here. Additionally, and against all reason, there are apparently zombies. I do not wish to lose even more time by going back to the ship. I want the problem taken care of."

Dietrich also nudged the mess with his foot. "Ah, boss? Maybe we should. Something isn't right."

Syrus stepped up to Crowe and blew the smoke in his face. "Look, pal, I just learned alot about this, your not telling us everything you know. Now, either you start talking, or your about to have some trouble with one very irritated employee. And the kids, are the least of your problem," Syrus said in an extremely cold tone. He stepped back, glanced at Crowe's body gaurd, and took another drag. The zombie, as Crowe had called it, had nothing left of a head, at least from what Syrus could tell. And the black slime matched the stuff they had seen in the closet. Syrus was always one to question things, more so after the walking bomb had gone off. He refused to be the only survivor again. He refused to admit this was out of controll, or, out of reach of being controlled. Syrus looked at Montag, and knew the bone had been broken. Obviously the thing had gotten a swing off. What ever the hell was going on here, Crowe had more information that he did, and he'd rather have it all on the table.

Logged

"Try to kill me, I'll be laughing," Celak

"You want to know who I am? Or WHAT I am? There is a huge difference," Kui

"Assassinate the assassin, then shoot the plane down!" Saul

"I once ate a skinned cat. It's owner didn't like me much after that," Dave

Dietrich stepped between Crowe and Syrus. "Calm down, Mr. Blackwater," he said quietly.

"Look, I tell you right now that nothing the Blue Heaven staff was working on could have had this effect, as far as I know," Crowe snapped, pointing at the corpse. "Now, there is at least one, probably more intruders on-station, and someone is tampering with the surviellance feeds. Do you really think your time is best spent interrogating me rather than finding and neutralizing whoever is doing so, hm?"

Syrus looked right at Dietrich and took another drag. "No, I won't calm down. I know who is tampering with the video feed. I don't know where to find him, but I know hes pretty much harmless, other than giving us misinformation," Syrus said with a sigh. He stepped back, trying to judge how quick Dietrich could move, and how fast he could run. If this turned bad, Syrus would just be another target for these paid guns. "Ok, boss, here's what I learned. There were three survivors of whatever the hell happened. Two kids, and an old man. The old man, from what I could tell, tried to gather information to fight off these, things, and died in the attempt. The kid I talked to had a large gash across his arm which should have been bleeding badly, but it wasn't. The other kid likes to mess with the computers. That little song that we heard, that was our computer nerd. The kid in the torn clothes, that was my source. I don't know where he is right now. He said that you, Mr. Crowe, knew alot more than you were letting on," Syrus paused to take another drag, "He also wouldn't tell me much, said it wouldn't be as fun, which makes me believe he could lead us to our other boy. Here's the main problem I see with this. Without information, we could all get broken and beaten, mabye even turned into these things. From what I could tell, my source was afflicted with this, but not to full effect. Hell, he might even be the carrier. I told him he could come back, that we would protect him, but he said he was better off runnin on his own. Crowe, I'm not going to lie, I need the money. But if you don't start explaining what you do know, you're going to lose a gun, and from the way it looks, you can't afford that," Syrus finished. He knew he was putting his pay on the line. But he wasn't about to take any risks he could avoid. Above all else, personal preservation was the key to living through anything. He wouldn't let Crowe die, but Syrus was sure that the athorities would love to hear about this when he got back. An ace in the hole was always key to getting information. Crowe was doing something illeagal, of that, Syrus was sure.

Logged

"Try to kill me, I'll be laughing," Celak

"You want to know who I am? Or WHAT I am? There is a huge difference," Kui

"Assassinate the assassin, then shoot the plane down!" Saul

"I once ate a skinned cat. It's owner didn't like me much after that," Dave

Dr. Tran cleared his throat, cutting through the increasingly-strident discussion. “Mr. Crowe, the men on this station were doubtlessly familiar with the research conducted here. If their compartmentalized knowledge had given them the capacity to control the situation, this disaster would not have happened.

“I would like to offer several suggestions. You hired us because of our training and expertise, so allow us to use it: You need to stop worrying about the security of the company’s research findings and give us whatever you can, even if it’s not directly relevant. In all probability, whatever did this is not a primary result of the research being conducted, but is a byproduct of synergy between different projects.’

The scholar leveled a withering gaze at the executive. “This isn’t about damage control to your station or the company, Mr. Crowe. Whatever did this is a threat to entire worlds. If we survive this, you do not want anyone to think that you withheld information that might have helped contain the situation.

“Now, I require full access to the information on the Lazarus Protocol, Mr. Crowe.”

"You... talked to the teenager?" That, of all things, seemed to shake the industrialist. "What did he say?" he demanded. "He, nor any other child, should be here."

He was quiet for a moment as he studied everyone coldly. "I have no idea what's causing this apparent re-animation. The only projects my company is currently pursuing that involve cybernetics, which is all I can think of that can be causing this, are located on a completely different station." Carefully, he said, "Blue Heaven was studying alien artifacts found on Tellariel, trying to develop products to enhance mental abilities. The Lazarus Protocol," he said, looking venomously at Dr. Tran, "was part of a project trying to see if the growth of extra-sensory abilities could be encouraged with the same technology." He turned and started storming down the hall. "Now, if you're quite satisfied, can we please find the intruders and find out what they hell they're doing?"

"May I suggest we head for Station Ops via the maintenance accessways instead of through the main hallways?" Dr. Tran asked absently, as he busily fed data into his portcomp. The information that he had been given might be important, but much more would be needed before the puzzle of what had happened here could be solved.

Looking up, he quietly continued. "The maintenance access was normally frequented by few, if any, of the station staff. It should let us avoid encountering more of these poor creatures."

Syrus listened closely as Crowe gave a little more information. He grabbed his revolver, checked the wheel, slapped it back and cocked the hammer.

"What the kid said to me is between me and him. His information was basicly useless, and I already told you anything relevent. I wouldn't be worried about them anyway, they survived however long with those things, they're doing better than us so far," Syrus said. He smiled to himself as he turned his back to Crowe.

Things were seeming clearer. Alien technology, not much of that existed nowadays. Alien artifacts could contain new viruses, new dieseases, new bacteria. It was possible this was a common problem to some poor race. Or it could be a rare problem for some lucky race. Syrus wasn't completely trusting, but he was starting to like Tran more with every question the man asked, and he loved the fact every question seemed to piss off Crowe.

Logged

"Try to kill me, I'll be laughing," Celak

"You want to know who I am? Or WHAT I am? There is a huge difference," Kui

"Assassinate the assassin, then shoot the plane down!" Saul

"I once ate a skinned cat. It's owner didn't like me much after that," Dave

"Ok, the maintenace sounds good, if tight. Though I'd be a darn sight happier if y'all would stop with all the secrets - your 'useless' information maght stand between us succeeding or gettin' killed. If I'd known how much of this crap would be held back, I'd nevah had signed that contrac'! Got any more of them there spiders to check the tunnels ahead?"

Dietrich started to follow Crowe down the hall, then stopped and shrugged apologetically. "My boss is an *******, but there's no arguing with him most of the time," he muttered. "I handle payment authorizations, I'll try to compensate you guys a little extra for this mess. You guys just do what you're good at, I've got to go make sure Mr. Crowe's safe. We'll catch back up to you once I can persuade him to let you do your job. I'll have my comm on, so yell if you need backup. There should be some bots somewhere around in the bay." Then he followed Crowe down the corridor, probably heading towards command.

Shutting off his commlink to Mr. Crowe and Deitrich, Dr. Tran grabbed up the torch. "On the other hand, let us blithely stroll to our doom with Mr. Crowe," muttered the aggravated scientist. "Since our fearless leader is in such a hurry, perhaps it would be better to disregard obvious safety precautions."

Syrus laughed to himself. He was glad Crowe was pissed off, and with what Dietrich had said about him being in charge of the pay, he was as happy as ever. If Crowe died, everyone still got paid. As long as everyone at least tried to save him. Syrus thought about how idiotic Crowe was being just walking off like that. Then he realized it was a hypocritical thought, because not two minutes ago he had gone on a rampage. Syrus just ignored it and followed to continue with his job.

Logged

"Try to kill me, I'll be laughing," Celak

"You want to know who I am? Or WHAT I am? There is a huge difference," Kui

"Assassinate the assassin, then shoot the plane down!" Saul

"I once ate a skinned cat. It's owner didn't like me much after that," Dave

As the group followed Crowe and Dietrich, a klaxon went off somewhere, and was quickly silenced. A quick check of the computer system revealed that the corridor had been partially locked down, and a thick steel door had slammed into place a short distance away. The intercom hissed on and the same kid who'd been talking could be heard, and for the first time didn't seem to be addressing the group. He sounded upset. "No fair no fair no fair! Aaaaaaaalex, he shut the door! Make it open!"

Derek heard it first. A rythmic banging echoed along the corridor. As they turned the corner, they saw an almost ridiculous sight. Two more crewmembers were apparently trying to bash through the lockdown door, splattering black goop all over the hallway. The banging noise was caused by a large magnetic torque wrench one had; the other was just running full out into it, but the nasty squishing noise he was making wasn't loud enough to carry. Both had their backs to the mercenaries, and didn't seem to have heard them.

((Crowe and Dietrich are nowhere to be seen, probably on the other side of the lockdown door, although there's another corridor that meets this one. The two zombies are completely focused on the door, and should you want, you can get the jump on them.))